The present invention relates to a device and method for delivering a stimulus to a flaccid penis to produce, enhance, or sustain an erection.
Because of psychological or physiological reasons many older males as well as some younger men suffer from impotency. Impotency is generally defined as the inability to attain an erection of the penis adequate to participate in coitus or sustain an adequate erection to allow the male to attain orgasm or ejaculation.
Many solutions to this problem have been suggested in the past including tourniquets, straps, bands, sleeves or other supportive devices, various different implantable devices, drugs and electrical stimulation. These various different procedures or devices have met varying success. Additionally, some of these techniques can be uncomfortable, inconvenient or dangerous to use, causing irreversible injury to the user. Devices which must be worn by the male during intercourse can interfere with the sexual act and be psychologically disturbing to the male as well as be painful or distracting to either or both of the participants. The implantable devices require a surgical procedure and therefore are not suitable for all males. Drugs, if not properly administered, will not only cause an erection but can also cause undesirable systemic responses such as severe headaches, breathing problems and heart irregularities.
Erection of the penis is caused by engorgement of the erectile tissue (the corpora cavernosa), a region of tissue along the sides and upper portion of the penis, with blood resulting in elongation, expansion, and stiffening of the penis. This engorgement may be caused by an increase of blood flow to the erectile tissue, a decrease in blood flow from the erectile tissue, or a combination of both.
A non-pharmaceutical approach has been the delivery of electrical stimulation through an electrode implanted in the cavernous nerve or an electrode tipped probe placed in the rectum of the male.
In spite of their disadvantages and side effects, drugs have been used most effectively to aid in generating an erection. Drugs and other substances which have been administered in the past include, testosterone and synthetic derivatives thereof, progesterone, yohimbine, damiana, ginseng, levadopa, hydergine, clomiphene, phosphorous, strychnine, cantharides, papaverine, hydralazine, sodium nitroprusside, pheoxybenzamine, and phentolamine.
No universally acceptable modality for the relief of impotency has been endorsed by the medical community. Various stimuli, including drugs and electrical stimulation, are presently utilized to at least temporarily (for a period adequate to perform sexual intercourse) relieve this problem. In spite of the lack of agreement on a preferred treatment modality, the number of prescriptions for erection enhancing drugs, particularly drugs for injecting directly into the tissue of the penis, has been rapidly increasing. However, there is no safe, reliable system available for injecting these drugs. As a result, the users are exposing themselves to the danger of overdose, and physical injury resulting from improper placement of the needle.
Thus, there is a need for a system which will allow discrete, safe, painless and reliable delivery of the stimulus which will bring about the desired, temporary relief of impotency. Preferably, the system should allow delivery of the stimulus prior to initiating the sexual encounter, and removal of the system so that it will not interfere either physically or psychologically with the performance of the male. As a minimum, the system should be unobtrusive and non-interfering if it must be retained in position to maintain the erection.